The following discussion of the background to the invention is intended to facilitate an understanding of the present invention. However, it should be appreciated that the discussion is not an acknowledgment or admission that any of the material referred to was published, known or part of the common general knowledge in any jurisdiction as at the priority date of the application.
With the proliferation of smartphones and the development of faster mobile Internet connection in recent years, over-the-top (OTT) instant messaging services such as Chikka™ Text Messenger are readily available for use by subscribers. However, present OTT messaging platforms require an active Internet connection via Wi-Fi; 3G/4G; GPRS; EDGE; LTE etc. With the exception of free Wi-Fi services which are restricted to specific location(s), Internet connection is typically a paid service and as such OTT messaging is generally restricted to subscribers who could afford post-paid packages where mobile data plans are incorporated. Pre-paid subscribers who are more cost sensitive are charged for Internet connection through a pay-per-specified-time model and may be reluctant to use OTT messaging due to the associated paid Internet access cost involved.
Roaming subscribers away from their home country may be discouraged to use OTT messaging services because international roaming data is charged at a premium, for example at USD 20 per Mega Byte (MB). For a specific group of roaming subscribers, it is important for overseas foreign workers (OFWs) to stay in contact with their loved ones in their home country. However, international SMS/MMS or roaming data is relatively expensive to OFWs.
It is an object of the invention to alleviate the above problems and provide a cost-effective solution to subscribers, in particular to pre-paid subscribers.